


The Daisy Chain

by rhoen



Series: Tumblr Prompt Fills [8]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Children, Gift Giving, M/M, Pre-Canon, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-14
Updated: 2017-10-14
Packaged: 2019-01-17 02:39:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12355752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhoen/pseuds/rhoen
Summary: For the prompt 'you don't give flowers to a boy (but this boy likes them)'.Kotetsu enlists Anko's help to make Izumo a little something.





	The Daisy Chain

**Author's Note:**

> I'm so great at titles, right? :D
> 
> For ghostfoxtales who wanted some KoteIzu without any angst. I hope this fits the bill! I was struggling to get something down that didn't involve angst (I tried them as kids, as teens, as adults...) but tinypearl32 was kind enough to allow me to use their suggestion, so kudos to them for the premise!
> 
> Unbeta'd. I'm also not used to writing soft, cute, fluffy, dialogue-heavy stuff (or platonic stuff, or kids) but _I TRIED_. *wipes sweat from brow* (Okay this was kinda fun to do.)
> 
>  **Note:** I tag pairings and content as much as possible (while trying to avoid spoilers) so you know what you're getting into. No one is obliged to read my work, especially if the content isn't something you like or might be triggering. Please keep yourself safe and happy and close this tab if you think this fic isn't for you!

When he comes across Izumo leaning over the side of the bridge, watching something down below, Kotetsu slows. He doesn’t call out as he approaches, but he knows Izumo can tell he’s there. Izumo doesn’t turn. He’s completely captivated by whatever it is he’s watching, and Kotetsu is surprised when he draws alongside and looks down to sees three girls he recognises from the Academy sitting on the riverbank, picking flowers and weaving them together. Izumo doesn’t say anything, he simply watches.

“Do you want to go down?” Kotetsu suggests after a few minutes, having worked out that Izumo isn’t going to say or do anything on his own. He watches his friend with a newfound degree of surprise, guessing that he has a crush on one of the girls: Izumo had never said anything about it before.

Izumo scoffs at the idea, pushing away from the bridge and turning away from Kotetsu. “No. Don’t be silly. Flowers are for girls.”

Confused, it takes Kotetsu a moment to chase after his friend, feet beating loudly on the wooden bridge.

“Where are you going?”

“I need to get some things from the market. Are you coming?”

For a moment Kotetsu considers going with him, and then holds back. “No, I’ll… I’ll catch up with you later.”

Izumo half turns to regard him, and then gives a seemingly disinterested shrug. “Sure,” he responds, his parting words uncharacteristically dismissive as he continues on his way. “See you whenever.”

Kotetsu knows Izumo well enough to guess that he’s bothered by something but is trying to hide it, and feels a little guilty for leaving him. He watches his retreating back for several seconds, trying to understand Izumo’s mood, and then turns and jogs back over the bridge. He glances down at the three girls. None of them are Anko, so he presses on, picking up pace as he tries to guess where she might be.

Half an hour later, he finds her loitering by the dango shop. He should have checked there first.

“What are you doing?” he asks as he comes up behind her, and she startles a little.

“Nothing!”

“Were you going to try and steal some?” Kotetsu asks, genuinely curious.

“As if,” she huffs. He only half believes her.

“Tell you what,” he says, thinking about the coins tucked away in his wallet. “You help me, I’ll buy you some.”

Anko’s face lights up, and then a moment later her features narrow into a suspicious glare. “What do you want me to do?”

“Show me how to make something.”

“What kind of thing?”

“It’s a secret,” Kotetsu warns her.

“Okay?”

“I want to make something out of flowers. Can you show me how to tie them together?”

“Flowers? Is that it?”

Kotetsu expects a different reaction from Anko. He half expects her to laugh, or to look at him like he’s gone a little bit crazy. All she does is tilt her head a fraction, seeming surprised by the simplicity of the request more than anything else. Then again, the promise of dango probably helps.

“Yeah, I saw someone making a ring of them and I want to do that too.”

“And you’ll buy me dango in exchange?”

“Yeah, can you do it?”

She scoffs. “Of course I can. Come on.”

Kotetsu finds himself being tugged by the sleeve, and follows as Anko sets of with purpose.

 

She leads him to a quiet field close to one of the training grounds, the grass thick with white and yellow flowers. Kotetsu quickly learns that there’s not much to the principle behind making a chain of daisies, but it’s hard to put into practice. His nails are too blunt, and after butchering more than a few stems he settles on using one of the kunai he probably shouldn’t keep in his pocket, but no adult has found out about it yet so he still has it in his possession.

“You’re slow,” Anko unhelpfully comments at one point. She leans back, arms propping her up, and watches Kotetsu’s clumsy progress.

“I’ve never done this before.”

She gives a noncommittal noise in response, and then flops back with a huff, staring up at the sky.

“Who is it for?”

“No one.”

“You’re a liar.”

They lapse into silence again, Kotetsu focusing on adding another daisy to the growing string of them. He’s not sure how many more to add.

Anko rolls onto her side, facing him, and breaks the silence again. “Do you fancy someone?”

“No,” Kotetsu insists.

“I do. I’ll tell you if you tell me who the daisy chain is for.”

He decides not to answer.

“Is it Momo?” She pauses, receives no answer, and then guesses again. “Hanami? Yoshiko?”

She leans closer, and Kotetsu tries to focus on finding another suitable daisy to add from the thinning patch around him.

“It’s not for Kara is it? Oooh! Tsukuba?”

“It’s for Izumo,” he finally admits, keeping the kunai in one hand as he lifts the string of daisies up to inspect his progress.

“Do you fancy him?”

For some reason her words make him feel slightly fuzzy. “No, we’re just friends.”

She hums. “You two are cute together.”

“Do you fancy Izumo?” he finds himself asking, panicked by the idea that suddenly presents itself.

“No,” Anko answers, rolling onto her back again and lifting her hand, inspecting it against the cloudy sky. “Umino Iruka.”

Kotetsu’s brow creases as he puts a face to the name. “The troublemaker?”

Anko giggles. “He’s cute.”

Kotetsu thinks they suit each other, although the two of them together would be every adult’s nightmare. “Are you going to tell him?”

“No! Well… I don’t think so…” Finished examining the silhouette of her hand, Anko turns her head to Kotetsu. “Are you done?”

“Maybe?” Kotetsu isn’t sure. He holds one end to the other, making a circle. “How do you get it to stay closed?”

Anko sits up and shuffles closer. “Make another cut, only just a little bit longer. You have to pass it over the head of the first daisy.”

The first attempt tears, and Kotetsu has to remove and replace the damaged flower. The second attempt works, and after some tense teasing of the flower through the narrow slit, it’s done. Looking at his handiwork, Kotetsu is pleased with himself.

“Can we go get dango now?”

“You won’t tell anyone?”

“No. You won’t tell Iruka? Not unless I want you to?”

Anko is oddly serious, and Kotetsu shakes his head as he promises: “I won't.”

A grin appearing on her face, the matter apparently forgotten as Anko springs to her feet, whooping.

“Come on!” she urges.

Careful of the daisy chain, Kotetsu gets up slowly, pushing the kunai back into its hiding place and digging out his wallet. The chain draped over his wrist, he pulls out enough money for one or two helpings of dango, depending on which kind Anko buys.

“Here,” he says, holding the money out to her.

“You’re not coming?”

“Do I have to?”

She takes the money, grinning. “Nope! Thank you!”

“See you in class,” he says in parting.

He doesn’t get a response. Anko has already taken off, bounding across the field, giving shouts of delight. Kotetsu makes sure the chain he’s made is secure in his hands, and then sets off too.

 

Izumo’s dad answers the door, his stern gaze softening when he sees Kotetsu.

“Is Izumo in?”

Ichirou is already moving aside to let him in, a touch of fondness in his smile. “In his room.”

The daisy chain hopefully hidden from the old shinobi’s view, Kotetsu slips past. “Thank you!” he calls out, disappearing up the stairs. He avoids stepping the two squeaky ones without missing a beat, and when he reaches the landing he’s surprised to find his heart racing at the small burst of exertion.

And then his stomach knots with anticipation as he looks towards the closed door of Izumo’s bedroom. It’s a new feeling, and Kotetsu is so stunned by it he can only stand there, frozen in the hallway, trying to work out why the feeling is there at all. It certainly can’t be Izumo. They’re friends.  Kotetsu is only here to give him something he’s sure Izumo will like. It’s no big deal; he’s visited innumerable times before. There’s nothing about the situation that calls for any degree of nervousness or apprehension, nor the quiet excitement that’s growing within him and making his palms feel warm and a little sweaty. He hopes the slender flower stems don’t wither beneath his touch.

It’s just Izumo, Kotetsu reminds himself, walking the short distance to the bedroom door and knocking. Just Izumo.

“‘Zumo?” he calls, announcing himself. There’s a soft noise from within, a thunk of something falling, and then the padding of feet on the floor. When Izumo opens the door he looks a little harassed, the hair at the back of his head mussed from where he’s been leaning against his pillow reading. Kotetsu can’t help smiling, his whole mood lifting, the anxiety forgotten.

“Hey,” he grins, holding up the daisy chain in offering. “I made you something.”

Izumo’s eyes widen as he processes Kotetsu’s words and takes in the ring of flowers. He’s speechless for several long, torturous seconds, during which Kotetsu’s expression falteres a little. At long last Izumo reaches out, carefully taking the gift.

“Thank you,” he says softly.

Relieved, Kotetsu tries to put a grin back on his face. “I don’t know how good it is, I’ve never made one before,” he babbles. “I hope you like it though?”

“Yeah, I do,” Izumo nods, looking down at Kotetsu’s handiwork as they both move into Izumo’s room. “My parents didn’t see, did they?”

“No? Would it be bad if they did?”

“I don’t think you’re supposed to give flowers to guys. You give them to girls you like.”

“Why not?” Kotetsu wonders, confused the the rule. “You like them.”

_ And I like you _ , he thinks, the thought for some reason leaving him a little pink in the cheeks. He’s lucky that Izumo is too focused on laying the daisy chain out in a perfect circle on his bedcovers and then altering the shape, too occupied to realise that his friend is having what feels like a small crisis. Anko’s words echo in Kotetsu’s mind, and he wonders if he was wrong when he insisted he didn’t fancy Izumo. He’s not really sure what fancying someone entails. Liking them a lot? He certainly likes Izumo a lot. They’re best friends, after all.

“Should I not give you any more?” he finds himself asking.

Izumo hums in consideration, pushing the chain into the rough form of a shiruken before answering. “I don’t know.”

“O-okay,” Kotetsu nods, distracted when he catches sight of the theory book that must have fallen to the floor when Izumo got up. He picks it up and waves it at Izumo. “Shall I test you?”

“Sure,” Izumo agrees. He doesn’t need to study, he’s the smartest in their class, but he enjoys it. Kotetsu likes the excuse to spend even more time with him.

They take up their usual positions on Izumo’s bed, kneeling across from each other, and while Kotetsu tests him, Izumo continues to play with the daisy chain now draped over his knee. He touches it lightly and carefully, moving it to a safe place on his desk when they get bored of the book and move to practicing taijutsu patterns in the limited space available. Each touch of Izumo’s body to his own sends a slow ripple of warmth through him, and Kotetsu finds himself distracted by it. It’s nothing new. He’s always felt like this around Izumo, it’s just that he never noticed before. He never thought about it.

He’s thinking about it now, though, and he thinks about it when he heads home late enough to warrant a scolding from his mother. The next time he’s in Izumo’s room he sees that Izumo has kept the daisy chain, and it hangs from the bedpost. He’s not sure what Izumo thinks of him – not entirely – but Izumo clearly cherishes the gift, and that’s all that matters.

 

Years later Kotetsu finds the daisy chain, dry and a little withered but still pretty, resting in a gift box, hidden away amongst Izumo’s things. He smiles at the memories it brings back, and then carefully replaces the lid and sets the box amongst the things he’s helping Izumo move into his new flat. Now both chuunin, and Izumo’s twentieth birthday just a few weeks away, Kotetsu thinks it’s maybe time to get Izumo some more flowers – a more impressive array this time, one that expresses in no uncertain terms the love and fondness that Kotetsu feels for him, which has only grown over the years.

Whether or not Izumo will accept him, Kotetsu doesn’t know, but, still smiling at the fact Izumo had kept and cherished the clumsy daisy chain all these years, he thinks he stands a good chance.


End file.
